Buffalo NY Fishing Report – Observations from 05/19/2025 – 05/25/2025
Here’s our latest Buffalo NY fishing report: This past week on the Upper and Lower Niagara and Lake Erie was a wild ride of fishing action, weather challenges, and unforgettable moments with great crews. From covering serious ground with new clients to busting chops with lifelong fishing buddies, we battled smallmouth bass, chased walleyes, and navigated tricky winds and rain. Despite a couple of rain-day reschedules, the fish were cooperative, the laughs were plentiful, and the memories were top-notch. Here’s a rundown of the week’s adventures, from strong numbers to the Whisperer’s uncanny ability to pull a walleye out of anywhere.
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Days on the water: 5
Who we fished with: friends/clients
Where we fished: Lower Niagara, Upper Niagara, Lake Erie
What we caught: smallmouth bass, walleye
Tactics: 3-way rigs with minnows; casting swim baits, dropshots, tubes, and bucktails
Detailed Reporting/Daily Observations
05/19/2025 – Covering Ground
Fished a Lower Niagara/Upper Niagara combo with new clients – Andrew, Tyler, and Chase. They’re from Westchester, NY – but Tyler just graduated from UB so the family was in town visiting. We covered some serious ground and caught fish everywhere. No biggies – but the numbers were strong.
05/20/2025 – Bustin’ Chops and Catching a lot
I fished the Upper Niagara for smallmouth bass with Jim, George, and Mark—childhood friends who’ve been casting lines together since they were kids. As usual, the day was filled with relentless ball-busting, trash-talking, and good-natured rivalry. These guys are all top-notch great sticks who can keep rods bent with little instruction, and they proved it once again on this trip. Numbers and size were excellent throughout most of the day.
05/21/2025 – Rain Day
Opted to reschedule the trip due to hard east winds, cold temps, and persistent rain. The day ended up not being that bad, but I was happy to take a day off. I slept in and went to the gym.
05/22/2025 – Going For It
Fished a short session on Lake Erie with the Whisperer in search of walleyes. He managed to whisper one up amidst the SW winds and persistent rain. It was supposed to let up mid-morning as was the wind…it did not. We went in cold, wet, and stronger for it lol.
05/23/2025 – Another Rain Day
Yes – that’s 3 days straight of wind and rain. Ended up rescheduling this trip due to a small craft advisory caused by W winds, persistent rain, and cold temps.
5/24/2025 – An Annual Tradition
Fished the Upper Niagara with the Whisperer and the Silent Assassin. Before committing wholeheartedly to walleyes for the summer months, these guys like to do a fun Upper Niagara session for smallmouth bass. We always go late May – and we always catch a lot of fish. This session was no different. Well, leave it to the Whisperer to somehow find a walleye in the mix. 
5/25/2025 – Good Times with the PA Crew
Fished the Upper Niagara with Jim, Larry, and Tom. Time on the water with these guys is always a blast – from moments of glory, to despair, to making each other feel like pros, to cutting each other down after dropping fish or getting snagged. It was a gorgeous day that turned out better than the forecast for once. The bite started strong and that continued through late morning. However, things slowed down toward the end of the day. Still, these guys made it happen in just about every zone – we lost count after a couple hours. 
Seasonal Assessment/General Observations
As you noticed from the play-by-play above, smallmouth bass dominated my week. So, I only have a few notes about what I noticed when fishing for them. That’ll change next week as I hope to get back on Lake Ontario for a couple days. Here’s what I noticed:
Throughout the system, most of the smallmouth bass are building beds or are already on them. Big females are getting scarce – they pop up in groups here and there. Still, there are a lot of fish around and it seems like more show up (or get set up) by the day so catch rates are high.
I rant about this every year and I’m going to do it again – please, do not target bedding fish. Watch this video – https://youtu.be/oRUIkGoEZ-U?si=-Zal4X6l2RsnMI58. It crushes recruitment numbers. I understand that there are fish in multiple stages of the spawn, so I’m not asking folks to leave the fish alone entirely. Please, do not sit over beds (spot lock) and pull fish from them. Cover ground and look for staging fish and females.
Buffalo NY Fishing Report – Forecast for 05/26/2025 – 06/01/2025
Forecast Commentary
I have another packed week on the docket and it looks like Mother Nature will put some classic spring obstacles in the way. The front half of the week looks good – mild winds, warm temps, and low chances of precipitation. I can’t say as much for some of the days toward the end of the week. It’s all good though – Mother Nature almost always gives us options this time of year.
As I mentioned above, I’ll likely spend most of my time on Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. However, I’ll spend at least one day on the Upper and/or Lower too – just to keep tabs on what’s going on. It’s going to be another awesome week. Stay tuned.
Stay healthy my friends – mentally and physically,
Ryan